Herman & Kittle Properties Inc. is planning the construction of an apartment complex with 211 units in the Fountain Square area of downtown Indianapolis.

by Adriana Pop, Associate Editor

Herman & Kittle Properties Inc. is planning the construction of an apartment complex with 211 units in the Fountain Square area of downtown Indianapolis.

According to the Indianapolis Business Journal, the $28 million project is slated to rise on a vacant 2.6-acre parcel at the corner of College and Maryland Street.

Later this month, the Metropolitan Development Commission will examine Herman & Kittle’s request to rezone the property and allow for multi-family construction.

Plans call for studios, one- and two-bedroom units, with rents ranging from $950 to $1,650 per month. Amenities will include a swimming pool, dog park, rooftop deck, coffee lounge, conference and game rooms, fitness center and bicycle storage.

The site of the planned development is owned by sisters Gina and Tina LaGrotte, who purchased it in 2008 from a subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Co. Ross Reller, director of land services for the Indiana region of Colliers International, is listing the property for $1.85 million.

Called The Vue, the project represents Herman & Kittle’s first venture in the city’s downtown residential market. The company is also the developer of Casey Acres, a 244-unit apartment complex located in the Spring Mill Trails mixed-use development in Westfield.

In regional news, Steadfast Income REIT Inc. has paid $24.23 million for the acquisition of the 222-unit Oak Crossing apartment community in Fort Wayne.

Completed in 2013, the property consists of 12 garden-style buildings with one-, two-, and three-bedroom units that average 1,000 square feet and rent for an average of $952 per month. The community is currently 94 percent occupied and offers a variety of amenities, including a fitness center, swimming pool, clubhouse with a stone fireplace, business center and grilling area.

“This is a high-quality property located within a mile from the newly built, highly acclaimed Parkview Regional Medical Center,” Ella Shaw Neyland, president of Steadfast Income REIT, said in a statement. “We believe the market’s long-term apartment performance outlook looks promising and bright.”

Oak Crossing is the REIT’s third property in Indiana. The company’s other assets in the state include the 268-unit Lodge at Trails Edge in Indianapolis and the 250-unit Sycamore Terrace in Terre Haute.

With this latest acquisition, Steadfast Income now owns 67 communities in 11 Midwestern and Southern states.